When people think of Soviet culture in the Stalin era, jazz usually isn't the first music to come to mind. But it was there, and some of it was pretty good, whether adapting Western standards, partying with a Russian twist, or just being adventurous. If that's a little too old-school for you, try some Soviet funk.
posted on Jun 9, 2008 - View this thread

Shaft was so cool that he had his own theme song. Shaft walked across the street whenever he wanted to. Shaft was a complicated man. But not all Blaxploitation heros were Private Dicks. They could be a Pimp, a Power-Hungry Criminal, a Coke Dealer, or a Male Prostitute. One was a Former Green Beret, one was a Bounty Hunter, and one was a Prize Fighter. Some were Foxy Ladies, such as Vigilante Nurses, US Special Agents, or Escaped Convicts. They might even be a Karate Master or a Vampire.
posted on May 24, 2008 - View this thread

The Pointer Sisters rehearse.
posted on Apr 30, 2008 - View this thread

In LA, a 63 (70!)-piece orchestra blends the styles of Charles Mingus and Duke Ellington with hip-hop, European classical music, and free jazz. Spend some time with the dAKAH Orchestra and it's founder Geoff "Double G" Gallegos.
posted on Apr 23, 2008 - View this thread

Lynda ! Barry ! Is ! Funk ! Queen ! Of ! Every ! Thing !
posted on Mar 1, 2008 - View this thread

Regarding the 'Creole Beethoven' Wardell Quezergue, composer, arranger, big band leader, master of Second Line funk, who brought us Earl King's Trick Bag, the Dixie Cups' Iko Iko and Chapel of Love, King FLoyd's Groove Me, Baby, Jean Knight's Mr. Big Stuff to name but a few--not to mention A Creole Mass--and who, later in life, survived Katrina, to become, among other things of late, according to Home of the Groove's Quezergue Onstage and Behind The Scenes, a street performer in the French Quarter. His is a name that ought not be forgotten.
posted on Feb 23, 2008 - View this thread

There was a time when it seemed that groups like Frederic Galliano presents Kuduro Sound System and Buraka Som Sistema would do for kuduro what groups like Diplo and Bonde do Role did for Funk Carioca: make it popular with hipsters in the United States. But it hasn't happened yet. Why?
posted on Feb 16, 2008 - View this thread

Think the Osmond Brothers didn't rock? Think again. "In spite of their squeaky clean image, the Osmonds had a soulful, sometimes raucous sound which was a precursor of the power pop of later years." Color my preconceived notions shattered.
posted on Nov 12, 2007 - View this thread

From 50's doo-wop crooner (and hairstylist extraordinaire) to 60's soul stepper to 70's psychedelic funk overlord and beyond, Parliament Funkadelic: One Nation Under A Groove takes a loving, informative and very entertaining look at the career of the legendary George Clinton and his unstoppable, hydra-headed funk machine.
posted on Oct 25, 2007 - View this thread

Pushing the envelope and changing the frame within which improvisational jazz has evolved for years is the focus of many contemporary jazz musicians. As far as the guitar is concerned, merging Hendrix's legacy with be-bop and the rhythms of popular music has been a primary objective. This can be traced back to the guitar of Pete Cosey in Miles Davis's groups of the 70'S. Jean-Paul Bourelly has been directly influenced by him, and Dave Fiuczynski's group, The Headless Torsos, pays its dues to Miles here. The rhythm concept behind such a shift is explained by wayne Krantz at the outset of this documentary. One can hear how close it is of Kevin Eubanks solo playing. Other guitarists of interest : Mitch Stein, Oz Noy, Charlie Hunter.
posted on Oct 22, 2007 - View this thread

Voodoo Funk - 11 African funk mixes from a vinyl archaeologist in Guinea
posted on Oct 17, 2007 - View this thread

When Conrad O. Johnson heard Otis Redding in concert in the year 1967, he was inspired to bring the kind of explosive energy he felt from that performance to the high school band he was charged with leading. He wanted to lead not only the best high school stage band in Texas, but the best high school stage band in the world. And with the Kashmere Stage Band, it's arguable that that's exactly what he did. Check out the Texas Thunder Soul.
posted on Sep 29, 2007 - View this thread

The author of the excellent (and previously mentioned) 60s/70s soul music blog Funky 16 Corners has put together an awesome compilation album available for free download, called Rubber Souled, featuring soul covers of Beatles classics; the results are intriguing, from Stevie Wonder's funked out version of We Can Work It Out to a nightmare inducing Bill Cosby cover of Sgt Peppers.
posted on Jul 25, 2007 - View this thread

Hardly anything has been heard from Sly Stone since he disappeared in the early 80's. The August issue of Vanity Fair is to be the first published interview with Slyvester Stewart in about 25 years. Taking 7 pages and 12 years in the making, it covers his history and possible future. Very little has been written about this monumental band, but an authorized book is slated for 2009. (more inside)
posted on Jul 3, 2007 - View this thread

New Kwest combining Daft Punk and Akira. Can you hear the Birdsong? (via Digg)
posted on Jul 3, 2007 - View this thread

If you missed Elvis Perkins on Late Night with David Letterman making their national television debut, at least now you can say you knew about these guys before they really hit the big time (check out "Acoustic Slip Away"). I first heard about them on Lex and Terry. Warning, may be NSFW, youtube and audio links. Click at your own risk.
posted on Jun 14, 2007 - View this thread

Tha interweb have the 70's funk you need: Stevie Wonder. Sly & the Family Stone. James Brown. Ohio Players. Bootsy Collins. Edwin Starr. And the documentary Make It Funky, parts 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6.
posted on Apr 26, 2007 - View this thread

'The Family' Has Reunited. Members of the studio band created in the wake of The Time's disintegration, who never toured and who only released one self-titled album (featuring the beautiful photography of Horst and lavish orchestration by Clare Fischer, like much of Prince's other projects at the time) have reunited. No word yet about any involvement from either Prince (writer of nearly all the band's songs, including their gigantic hit Nothing Compares 2 U - well, at least for Sinead O'Connor) or his Revolution cohorts Wendy (twin sister of Family co-lead vocalist Susannah Melvoin) & Lisa, now a successful scoring team for film and television.
posted on Jan 31, 2007 - View this thread

The Awesome Power of a Fully Operational Mothership First, there comes the Brides, followed by stretchin' out with Casper the Holy Ghost and some Horny Horns. Next, with people standing on the verge, the Wizard of Woo opens the Maggot Brain. A devil-dance later, all are witnesses to The Landing. The recovery of funky stuff commences, and the mother is summarily turned out, with subsequent damage to the roof. (YouTube)
posted on Dec 31, 2006 - View this thread

Jackie Mittoo. Wayne McGhie and the Sounds Of Joy. Bob and Wisdom. The Mighty Pope. And many others. A free concert back in July and a series of reissues have begun to tell the story of the Toronto reggae, funk and soul scene of the 1950's, '60's and '70's.
posted on Dec 29, 2006 - View this thread

Johnny 'Guitar' Watson on the YouTube:

Ain't That a Bitch
A Real Mother For Ya
Gangster of Love
Superman Lover
I Want To Ta Ta You Baby
Special Boogie
More Inside
posted on Nov 10, 2006 - View this thread

WaxDJ.com - an excellent source for free downloads and streams of original electronic music mixes of all sorts, from seasoned pros to beginning bedroom amatuers, all told numbering in the hundreds or thousands. My current brand new favorite is the very diverse and well-versed Detriot/Chicago techno stylings of DJ Rubsilent. Recomended mix: Future Funk 23: (Direct MP3 link) (Streaming mp3 link) But don't let me divert you - search for your favorite local DJ or browse for new ones.
posted on Oct 11, 2006 - View this thread

Many of you have probably heard of "Superfly" with its classic poster, and iconic soundtrack by Curtis Mayfield. However, you might not have heard of some other Blaxploitation films. For Instance "The Black Gestapo" which mixes NAZI aesthetics with the roving bass of a tight funk beat, or perhaps even more ludicrously the 1992 underground Blaxploitation tribute film "Gayniggers From Outer Space".
posted on Jan 20, 2006 - View this thread

Got questions about the Funk Mob? This is the place to go. The Motherpage covers everything P. Funk, from an extensive faq, through an incredibly detailed discography, to a bibliography that can lead to years more reading.
posted on Oct 20, 2005 - View this thread

WeFunkRadio.com has 390 full shows available for download featuring the funk, underground hip-hop, and rare grooves that are so hard to find. BitTorrents are available for the two most recent shows and there's always the audio stream and podcasts coming at you fresh from Montréal's CKUT radio.
posted on Sep 16, 2005 - View this thread

This is what a party sounds like. If you grew in Washington DC in the 80's anyway. Invention of go-go music, DC's home-grown version of funk, is often attributed to Chuck Brown, but it probably came closest to breaking through to the mainstream when "Doin' Da Butt" was featured in Spike Lee's "School Daze" and E.U.'s beats were subsequently sampled by Salt-N-Pepa. [mi]
posted on Jul 8, 2005 - View this thread

R.I.P. Lyn Collins [NYT, reg. req.] Backing singer for James Brown, whose revue she joined in 1971 (she was also the sister of his band members Bootsy and Catfish Collins), her first hit was the monster Think (About It) in 1972, one of the most sampled records in hip hop, maybe most famously in Rob Base and DJ E-Z Rock's It Takes Two. (Extensive, but by no means full, list of Collins samplers here.) Audio sample (mp3) of You Can't Love Me If You Don't respect Me here. Brief obit and full mp3 of a great live version of Do Your Thing here.
posted on Mar 17, 2005 - View this thread

Jazz, Funk, Soul, Disco joints sampled in House, Hip-hop, and others [via memepool]
posted on Jan 24, 2005 - View this thread

Since finding that Tongue In Chic was on CD at last, of late I've thought of the rhythm section nonpareil, Chic, with that welded groove between Nile Rodgers's guitar and Bernard Edwards's bass. As performers and producers--applying the patented Chic sound to an encyclopedia of superstars--what Chic played was a tight and transcendent penthouse funk. Now I find that Nile Rodgers has a homepage, too. The Links pages one and all are motherlodes of Chic-ism, let it be noted. Ah-h-h, Freak Out!
posted on Oct 16, 2003 - View this thread

Yay, after the flash fest that was Royksopp's 'Remind Me', here's anoter retro-pixel music video (and a damn catchy choon), from Junior Senior and it can be distributed freely too. "A Tummy Touch-esque slab of nu-disco breaks. The single The Avalanches forgot to make, slick discoid beats, wonderful smile-inducing vocal & beats to make you throw down the funk." according to breaksworld.com
posted on Feb 27, 2003 - View this thread

"Picasso of keyboard funk" - Professor Longhair would be 84 today if he were still alive. His distinctive meld of boogie woogie, blues, funk and Latin makes for piano that is quintessentially New Orleans...Tipitinas, one of the more famous local music bars, took its name from his signature song. "Fess" was a seminal influence on such musical greats as James Booker, Fats Domino, Allen Toussaint, Art Neville, Doctor John and Marcia Ball, one of my current favorites. You can hear a few Fess samples from Crawfish Fiesta, arguably his best recording, issued just after he died in 1980. He was inducted in the R&R Hall of Fame as an early influencer in 1993. Happy birthday, Professor!
posted on Dec 19, 2002 - View this thread

In an a era where so much music seems overly mechanical Funk45.com and Galactic Fractures are terrific reminders that danceablity can be warm and loose and that human-powered music is the funkiest. These sites have what every good music site should have, encyclopedaic knowledge, detailed info, and truckloads of audio that makes you wanna find a good record store and hunt down the 45's yourself. And it's all presented in a way that encourages you to dig deeper. The song You Got Me Mama by Hayes Ware is a favorite, but there's plenty of great stuff. requires RealAudio
posted on Aug 31, 2002 - View this thread

Put a glide in your stride and dip in yo' hip and step on board the Mothership*. Finally, a comprehensive site for one of the most influential musical agglomerations of the last 30 years. All hip-hop, and most modern R&B and Rock would be unimaginable without these guys. More Cyberbetabuckdown here if that wasn't enough, plus a great essay by Scot Hacker here. Like the man says "Uncle Jam Wants You!"

*Flash site. Let the intro finish, then comes the good stuff.
posted on May 14, 2002 - View this thread

The Periodic Table Of Funk. Starts with James Brown and ends with Bruce Lee's fist. Dy-no-mite!
posted on Apr 18, 2002 - View this thread

'If I didn't save this music no one else would' Fascinating story of one man's fight to preserve to music of an entire continent. Imagine if the American or British music of the 1940s and 1950s, so beloved by movie producers and commercial makers hadn't been available since then. 'Blue Velvet' stuck in a basement somewhere covered in dust. The only copy of 'Sixteen Candles' in a junk shop somewhere slowly warping in the sun. It really doesn't bare thinking about...
posted on Jul 29, 2001 - View this thread